Unproductive Labor Quotes
A “stock-jobber” at that time referred to a stock broker who bought and sold shares of companies and enterprises. Today it tends to refer to an unscrupulous stock broker or a short term speculator. In the 18th century, economists like Say questioned whether or not the stock jobbers performed any useful economic or other function. His and others concluded “no.” By the 21st century, many were asking the same question. So it is not a new issue as to the political debate over the utility of part of the financial industry. The short term speculators were for years considered gamblers until it was discovered that the more successful ones generally had inside information (often illegal) or used computer trading to take advantage of other shareholders whose computers were not as fast. However, the Great Depression and the Great Depression called into question whether or not the financial industry was itself a hazard to national economies if not the world economy. That questioning began in the 18th century.
